Why I love my job

Last week, I went to see Gary Vaynerchuk  speak at the Mansion House. It was a big social media event with a number of other speakers also. Niall Harbison of Lovin Dublin was talking about how running a business can be a complete nightmare but he still loves what he does.

What he said is funny because he’s spot on. There are so many parts of our jobs that we hate. For example, I am regulated by Central Bank. This means I have to overload my clients with paperwork and brochures in order to meet the Central Bank’s compliance requirements. I have to deal with insurance companies and their idiosyncratic rules made by people who have never worked on the commercial side of the business.  And then there is the day to day admin that I hate doing but it has to be done.

But there are the parts than make everything so worth while, the people you work with. People with lots of plans for the future and who are looking for advice on whether they can do it without messing everything up.

• The mother who is working too hard and wants to take a few years off work so she can see her kids growing up. Can they afford to live on one salary for a few years?
• The father who loves Westerns and wants to bring his kids ranching in the Wild West.
• The man who bought the home of his dreams and is spending years on restoring it to its former glory.
• The person who just retired and doesn’t think she has enough money to have a happy retirement, doing all the things she loves doing. Will her savings & pension be enough?
• The young couple who want to have a life full of experiences. What do they need to do so they can look back on life without regret.
• The couple that want to knock 5 years off their working lives so they can go travelling while they still have lots of energy.
• The couple that want to get enjoyment out of helping their kids get a start up in life without putting their own happiness at risk.
• The guy who wants to retire from his demanding job when he’s 55 and go work on the family farm.

These are just some examples of the people that I have worked with in the last year. Meeting all these people, hearing their stories and helping them achieve what is important to them is why I love my job.

What is it that you love about your job? Or more importantly, what would you love to do but aren’t? And what is stopping you? Drop me an email at steven@bluewaterfp.ie